Category Archives: San Antonio Botanical Garden

It takes a village to keep the Monarch migration going. That’s surely the case for “Butterfly Lady” Maraleen Manos-Jones, one female Monarch butterfly, butterfly researchers far and wide, a USDA inspector, Southwest Airlines and the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

In South Texas, Monarch butterflies continue laying eggs, hatching caterpillars, and forming chrysalises well into November. In fact, several caterpillars are noshing on milkweed leaves in my kitchen as I write this. When they emerge from their chrysalises later this month, I’ll tag them and send them on their way to Michoacan where they can join their butterfly brethren for the winter.

But in upstate New York, late season Monarchs are problematic. Maraleen Manos-Jones, author of The Spirit of Butterflies, lives in Shokan, New York, about 100 miles north of the Big Apple. She noticed a Monarch caterpillar forming its chrysalis in her butterfly garden on September 22.

This caterpillar, as a butterfly, flies Southwest Airlines. The critter formed its chrysalis on Sept. 22 in upstate New York. –photo via Maraleen Manos-Jones

“Most adult monarchs had already started their southward migration,” Manos-Jones relayed via email. By early October, the weather turned cold and she brought the chrysalis indoors. On October 20th, a beautiful female Monarch butterfly emerged.

Often, late season Monarchs that remain in the chrysalis for more than two weeks can emerge with deformed wings. Not this girl. “She was a perfectly formed, large, brilliantly colored female,” said Manos-Jones. Manos-Jones kept the Monarch in a net enclosure in her home, providing nectar from late season flowers from her gardens.

She hoped the Monarch could reunite with its sibling butterflies, but if released in upstate NY in October with temperatures in the 40s, the butterfly would perish. “Butterflies can’t fly when the temperature is less than 55,” said Manos-Jones, adding that cold weather, a lack of nectar sources, and then Superstorm Sandy made for complications.

Net/nectar cage for Monarch butterfly in New York –photo via Maraleen Manos-Jones

What to do? Manos-Jones called Southwest Airlines to ask them to fly her and the Monarch butterfly south. “The whole idea came to me slowly and organically,” said Manos-Jones. “There were many phone calls.” Manos-Jones was passed to the Southwest Airlines PR department. “I spoke from my heart,” she said. “They also checked out my ‘butterfly credentials.'”

A self-described performer, artist, educator and environmentalist, Manos-Jones has butterfly street cred to spare. Smitten at an early age, she once camped with the Monarchs in Michoacan for weeks in the 70s, trying to find the location of the ancestral roosts along with cowboy entomologist Dr. Bill Calvert. She has raised Monarchs for 40 years, been involved in Monarch conservation for decades, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the La Cruz Habitat Protection Project, Inc. and Forests for Monarchs. She also offers butterfly garden consulting, butterfly tours, and in safer times, Monarch butterfly tours to Michoacan.

Ultimately, Southwest agreed to comp the 1950-mile flight for Manos-Jones and her precious cargo, from Albany, NY, to San Antonio, TX. Southwest even assigned an on-flight escort to fly with Manos-Jones and record the trip. Upon arrival in San Antonio, a Southwest Airlines video crew will be on hand to document the event.

San Antonio Botanical Garden Butterfly Garden will be the scene of the release of a New York butterfly’s release, flown to San Antonio by Southwest Airlines –photo via www.urbanspotlight.com

Brooks Thomas, the PR representative for Southwest Airlines that arranged the “butterflight,” said it was impossible to say no to Manos-Jones. “She’s pretty passionate,” he said.

“Maraleen is an original,” said Dr. Chip Taylor, founder of Monarch Watch. “She’s one of a kind.” Taylor advised Manos-Jones that transporting butterflies across state lines is illegal without a permit from the USDA, and put her in touch with government agent Wayne Wehling. Wehling works with butterfly breeders and others regarding the legal moves of plants and insects around the country. Manos-Jones will be in compliance, traveling with her permit.

Her butterfly will be safely ensconced in a glassine envelope provided by Dr. Lincoln Brower, one of the foremost researchers of Monarch butterflies in the world. She’ll keep the butterfly calm, cool, in the dark, in a container lined with an ice pack and plenty of cushioning.

WHAT: Release of Monarch Butterfly from New YorkWHERE: San Antonio Botanical GardenThe San Antonio Botanical Garden555 Funston @ North New Braunfels AvenueSan Antonio, TX 78209WHEN: 3:30 p.m., Monday, November 5, 2012WHY: We want it to have a chance to make it to MexicoHOW CAN YOU HELP:Plant milkweed, the Monarch butterfly host plant

The San Antonio Botanical Garden’s butterfly garden will be the stage for the release, with ample milkweed, asters, and other late season bloomers providing a nectar-filled backdrop for a successful release.

If you’d like to join us, the release will take place at 3:30 PM Monday, November 5. Regular Botanical Gardens admission charges will apply.

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The San Antonio Botanical Garden celebrates the whole life cycle with the aptly named “Amazing Butterflies” exhibit, an interactive nature maze created by London’s Natural History Museum in collaboration with Minotaur Mazes. The exhibit kicks off this weekend with special events and will run through January 8, 2012.

Amazing Butterflies aims to give visitors a chance to experience the challenges of being a caterpillar by wandering through a nature maze of larger-than-life leaves, grass and trees before morphing into a butterfly. Enroute, participants learn how caterpillars move, what they eat and how other creatures help them during their life cycle. Ultimately, participants have the chance to flap their wings and even do a wacky dance–maybe like the one in the video above? (Apologies to old friend Kim Wilson and the Fabulous Thunderbirds.)

“The timing of Amazing Butterflies couldn’t be better, since fall is when our local butterflies are most active and people can watch their magical life cycle unfold in their own backyards,” said Bob Brackman, executive director of the San Antonio Botanical Garden. “And what a bonus that the fall is when the Monarch butterflies are migrating through San Antonio.”

Of course, you don’t have to convince the Texas Butterfly Ranch that butterflies are amazing. We know it. That’s why I’ve signed up to talk about Milkweed, Monarchs, Migrations and More* at 11 AM on Saturday at the exhibit. Hope to see you there.

Opening weekend activities run 10 am – 2 pm this Saturday and Sunday and include butterfly workshops for children and adults, children’s arts and craft activities, live butterfly tent, and more. The Austin Bike Zoo will make an appearance with their much lauded amazing butterfly bicycles, offering rides and fun.

*If the Monarchs are out, we’ll do a demonstration on how to tag them. Join us!

The San Antonio Botanical Garden is located at 555 Funston Avenue in San Antonio, TX 78209. Amazing Butterflies exhibit continues through January 8, 2012. Access to the exhibit is free with paid admission to the San Antonio Botanical Garden–$8 for adults; $6 for students, seniors, and military; and $5 for children age 3-13. Botanical Society members enjoy free admission.